Massive lake of boiling carbon discovered underneath the United States could spark climate chaos

A carbon pool of this size could emit dangerous carbon that could have a direct effect on humanity as we know it

by MARGI MURPHY

14th February 2017, 5:48 pm

Updated: 14th February 2017, 5:48 pm

SCIENTISTS have discovered a colossal pool of molten carbon stretching 1.8million square kilometres under the United States.

The grim find is a warning to humanity that the planet could easily spark climate chaos without the help of humans.

Alamy

A molten carbon reservoir under the Earth's surface has startled scientists

Geologists at Royal Holloway, University of London's Department of Earth Sciences found the melting region - which is just 350km below Earth's surface - using a huge network of 583 seismic sensors that measure Earth's vibrations, to create a picture of the area's deep sub surface.

They were shocked to discover a massive reservoir under western US.

Scientists believe that if any of this carbon was to be emitted into the atmosphere it could have grave consequences for the environment.

"We might not think of the deep structure of Earth as linked to climate change above us, but this discovery not only has implications for subterranean mapping but also for our future atmosphere," concluded Dr Hier-Majumder, "For example, releasing only one percent of this CO2 into the atmosphere will be the equivalent of burning 2.3 trillion barrels of oil.

"The existence of such deep reservoirs show how important is the role of deep Earth in the global carbon cycle."

Alamy

The molten lake was detected by seismic sensors

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"It would be impossible for us to drill far enough down to physically 'see' Earth's mantle, so using this massive group of sensors we have to paint a picture of it using mathematical equations to interpret what is beneath us," said Dr Sash Hier-Majumder of Royal Holloway.

"Under the western US is a huge underground partially-molten reservoir of liquid carbonate.

"It is a result of one of the tectonic plates of the Pacific Ocean forced underneath the western USA, undergoing partial melting thanks to gasses like CO2 and H2O contained in the minerals dissolved in it."

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